The environmental issues relating to the use of toxic chemicals has been well documented, especially as these chemicals adversely affect human beings, animals, trees, plants, fish, and other resources. Also, it is known that toxic chemicals usually cannot be safely recycled, are costly to prepare, cause the pollution of the world's water, add to the carbon footprint, and reduce the oil and coal reserves. Thus, there has been an emphasis on the development of green materials such as bio-based polymers that are biodegradable, and that minimize the economic impacts and uncertainty associated with the reliance on petroleum imported from unstable regions.
Biodegradable (bio) polymers have been referred to as a group of materials that respond to the action of enzymes, and that chemically degrade by the interaction with living organisms. Biodegradation may also occur through chemical reactions that are initiated by photochemical processes, oxidation and hydrolysis that result from the action of environmental factors. Also, biodegradable polymers include a number of synthetic polymers that possess chemical functionalities present in naturally occurring compounds. However, several of these polymers can be costly to prepare, may not fully be biodegradable, and may decompose resulting in emitting carbon to the environment.
Bio or biodegradable matter has also been referred to as organic materials, such as plant and animal matter and other substances originating from living organisms, or artificial materials like the bio-based amorphous polyesters disclosed herein, and that are subject to nontoxic degradation by microorganisms.
Therefore, there is a need for bio based resins and processes thereof that minimize or substantially eliminate the disadvantages illustrated herein.
Also, there is a need for polymers and toners thereof derived from sources other than petroleum and bisphenol A.
Further, there is a need for economical processes for the preparation of bio-based resins that can be selected for incorporation into toner compositions used to develop xerographic images.
Another need relates to toner compositions, inclusive of low melting toners, prepared by emulsion aggregation processes, and where the resins or polymers selected are environmentally acceptable and are free of bisphenol A components.
Moreover, there is a need for xerographic systems and solid ink jet systems that utilize for development bio-based toners, such as bio-based rosin diol polyester toners that are obtainable in high yields, exceeding for example 90 percent, possess consistent small particle sizes of, for example, from about 1 to about 15 microns in average diameter, are of a suitable energy saving shape, have a narrow particle size GSD, and that include various core shell structures.
Yet another need resides in processes for the preparation of bio-based amorphous polyester toner resins that avoid the use of toxic materials like certain costly epoxides.
There is also a need for bio-based amorphous polyesters that are capable of being converted to innocuous products by the action of suitable living organisms such as microorganisms.
These and other needs and advantages are achievable in embodiments with the processes and compositions disclosed herein.